Standards of conduct

The purposes and qualities of life sought in this campus community are determined
by the board of trustees in cooperation with faculty, staff and students. Bluffton
affirms that rules controlling smoking, drinking and drugs serve purposes which are
appropriate on grounds of health, cleanliness, safety and regard for others. Bluffton
realizes that its rules can scarcely be expected to regulate behavior when students
are not under its jurisdiction. However, that is not to say that off-campus behavior
is a matter of indifference to the university community. Off-campus conduct may detrimentally
affect a student's own academic effectiveness and the lives and activities of others.

Bluffton retains the right to exclude any students whose conduct does injury to themselves
or to the university community. Persons are admitted to Bluffton University with the
understanding that they will be responsible members of the academic community.

There are some specific expectations which members of the community have developed
as important to the quality of life desired for Bluffton. For a full list of these
expectations, please see the Bluffton University Student Handbook.

Harassment policyBluffton affirms the principle that students, faculty and staff have the right to
be free from any racial, sexual or any other type of harassment by any other member
of the campus community. This is simply a restatement of the expectation that members
of our campus community will respect others who are a part of the community and the
positive gifts they bring to the community. Bluffton's policy is that any type of
harassment is unacceptable and will be viewed as a violation of campus standards.

Examples of the types of harassment that are unacceptable include threats or verbal
abuse directed toward another member of the community, including verbal assaults,
derogatory racial, sexist or homophobic remarks, defamation of character or any other
type of behavior that knowingly puts another member of the community in a state of
fear or anxiety. This applies to any type of communication (e.g. telephone, e-mail,
face-to-face, group interaction), and it may involve a single or repeated incident.